Tag Archives: jordans mill

Dragonflies under the microscope: 21st February 2015

Larva ClassroomAn interested group of about 20 gathered at Jordans Mill to listen to Steve Cham gives us an introduction to dragonfly and damselfly larvae, including a few pointers to help to identify them. As well as a slide presentation, Steve came armed with his collection of exuviae for each of us to hold and to take a closer look at under microscopes.

Larva Classroom 2Dragonflies eggs hatch into larvae which live underwater for up to 5 years and are fierce predators, even taking small fish like sticklebacks. Steve explained that an exuvia [plural: exuviae] is the skin left behind after an adult dragonfly has emerged and flown, so they look just like the larva in its last stage of development.

A Closer LookSteve’s talk generated a lively discussion after which we had the opportunity to examine a few exuviae under the microscopes provided.

Jordans Mill Family Day: 18th May 2014

It was a lovely sunny day for our Family Day at Jordan’s Mill and great fun was had by all.

  • Moth traps and Pitfall Traps were opened to see what had been caught overnight.
  • Sweep nets were swung and pond nets were dipped to catch beasts that were identified and then looked at under microscopes.
  • Snails were identified and a large pet snail crawled all over its box.
  • Rocks were studied.
  • Quizzes were done.
  • Lots of ice cream and cakes were eaten.